Shattered
by Complete-Chaos56
Summary: The summer was not the greatest for Hermione Granger. With her mother dead, and her father drinking, her friends not talking to her, and Ginny spreading rumors about her, who will be able to help her when she needs it the most. Warning: Self- harm, Rape, Abuse. You've been warned.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: Oh my goodness! I know! It's been forever since I've actually published a story. Life just really got ahead of me and I totally forgot all about it. Anyways… I think I've just completely given up that story and I just decided to write a new one. I hope you like this one and I promise beyond promises that I WILL finish this story. Anyways I hope you like it, so leave me a review and let me know what you think. Constructive criticism only. No flames please. _

_Warnings: Rape, Violence and self-harm. Please if this bothers anyone, do not read this story. _

_I do not own anything just the plot. Anything that you do recognize, belongs to the wonderful JK Rowling. Now… I think I've rambled enough… On with the story! _

Chapter 1

Looking out of her window at the moon, sat a lonely girl with long brown flowing locks and big brown eyes. Hermione Granger, a 17 year old girl sat with her knees up to her chest, her hand gripping them tightly. She was wearing a black dress that went a little past her knees and her eyes looked incredibly sad.

Earlier in the week on a cold dreary Monday, Hermione got a call that was possible the worst call in her entire life. The wall was telling her that her mother was in an accident earlier that day. She was killed by a drunk driver.

The funeral was a couple of hours ago, but her father was already being unbearable. He hasn't stopped drinking since they got home. She gripped her knees tighter, trying to stop her tears from falling, but it was no use as they slid down her cheeks, landing on her knees. She bit down on her lip, as sobs wracked over her, making her curl up into a ball on the floor. "Why? Why did you have to leave me?" She whimpered. That night Hermione Granger fell into a fitful sleep, laying on the floor in her room.

Hermione woke up the next day, her body sore from sleeping the uncomfortable ground. She looked outside, noticing that it was stormy outside, even though it was the middle of July. She got up from her position on the floor before walking over to her mirror and looking at her reflection. She frowned at her hair and the dark circles under her red rimmed eyes. She shook her head at herself before walking to her bathroom to shower. As soon as she was finished she put on her black skinny jeans and a light blue top, she then grabbed a tie and quickly put her hair in a messy pony tail.

Walking out of her bedroom door, she walked down the stairs in search of her father. What she saw was not something that she liked. Beer cans littered the floor of the living room and her father was passed out drunk on the sofa. She shook her head in slight disgust. Walking over to him, she lightly prodded his shoulder. "Dad," she poked his shoulder again when there was no response. "Dad wake up." She stepped back slightly when she was his eyes open slowly.

Her father grunted when he saw her before pulling himself into a sitting position, "What do you want?" he grunted, making his displeasure known at being woken up from his drunken stupor. Hermione shook her head again before looking at him. "It's half past noon dad. I thought you would want to be awake now," she said. She thought she heard something that sound unmistakably like a growl coming from her father, but she couldn't be sure. "Well you though wrong!" He snapped at her. She was taken aback slightly at his tone because her father had never been anything but nice to her.

He let out another grunt before grabbing his wallet and storming to the door. "I'm going out and I won't be back til later. I expect this mess to be cleaned up by the time I get back!" He barked at her, before he stormed out of the house and slamming the door behind him.

Feeling quite distraught, Hermione looked around the room at the many beer cans that were on the floor before sighing. She started cleaning up the floor the muggle way, before realizing that she was a witch, and 17 at that, before taking her wand out of her pocket, swishing it and making all of the can disappear. Walking over to the kitchen, she realized just how hungry she was, before making herself something to eat. For the rest of the day she occupied herself with trivial things to keep her mind off of her unusually silent house.

Hermione didn't realize that she had fallen asleep, until she heard the loud bang of the front door, jolting her out of her sleep. Her bleary eyes looked towards the source, before she brought her hands up to wipe the sleep out of them.

Her eyes widened as she noticed her stumbling father almost fall over. She looked at the clock on the mantel and saw that it was already 2 in the morning.

She hoped that her father didn't see her and she bit her lip as she got up from the couch and started tip toeing towards the staircase. It was just her luck that as soon as she put her foot down, the floor board creaked from under her, and her father's head snapped in her direction.

"You! It's all you f-fault! I k-know it's all you fault!" Her eyes widened when he said this, as she stopped completely in her tracks, her father stomping over to her and grabbing her shoulders roughly. "Y-you killed her! I know you did!" he screamed in her face. Hermione shook her head vehemently, "No! I didn't kill her! I didn't!" She shouted in fear at her father. "Don't lie to me! I k-know you killed her!" He slurred drunkenly. "No! I.." Her next words were cut off by her fathers hand smacking her hard across the face.

Hermione looked up at him, at a loss for words. Her cheek stinging from the slap. She whimpered slightly as she felt her father's fingers digging into her shoulders before pushing her roughly against the wall, her head hitting hard against it. She bit down on her bottom lip to keep from screaming out as her father brought his face closer to hers. "Don't lie to me you little bitch!" He shouted at her. She felt tears stinging her eyes as she kept denying the accusations. "I didn't." She whispered again as she felt another sharp sting to her cheek.

That night was possibly the worst night for Hermione ever. As soon as her father left her, so he could pass out on his bed, she tried getting up from the floor where he left her. She let out a sharp gasp of pain gripping her sides from the hurt that she was experiencing. Her father had decided that he wasn't done, so kicking her in the ribs was a good idea to him. She finally got up from the floor and slowly trudged up to her room.

She collapsed on her bed, hissing in pain, and curling up on her uninjured side. She didn't know any healing spells, so her wand wouldn't come in handy. She bit down on her lip, fighting back the tears that were threatening to fall. She didn't know why her dad was acting this way, but she knew that she wouldn't survive the summer if he kept acting that way.

She curled up tighter into a ball, ignoring the pain in her side and finally released the tears from her eyes sobbing. She missed her mother dreadfully and for a moment as she felt was anger at being left alone with her father. That moment was a fleeting one however before she started sobbing even harder at the thought of even being mad at her mother.

That night Hermione fell into another fitful sleep, a black and blue bruise already starting to form on her cheek from where her father decided to leave his first mark for the summer. She slept on that night, not knowing that the worst was yet to come.

_So tell me what you think! (: I promise the next chapter will be up soon. _


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Woo! Here is chapter two for you guys! So I hope you enjoy it and please don't forget to review. They make me happy. This chapter also introduces a certain gorgeous character that you all love to love and love to hate. And WARNING… This chapter contains rape, so if that concerns any of you I suggest you not read it. So with that… On with the show! Oh yeah… I don't own any of this but the plot. Anything you recognize belongs to the lovely JK Rowling._

Chapter 2

Over the next couple of weeks, the same thing happened to Hermione. Her father would go out, get drunk and then come home and beat her senseless. By the time August rolled around, there was not an inch of her body that wasn't black and blue.

On a warm sunny Tuesday when Hermione knew that her father was out, she decided to make the trip to Diagon Alley. She looked down at her arms and where there used to be completely clean and unblemished skin, there were different crisscross marks. After the first couple of beatings Hermione realized that she needed an outlet for everything. She couldn't scream, for fear of her father hearing her, so one day when he was out, she walked to the kitchen to sift through the drawers. She came across one of her father's blades before lightly pressing it against her skin.

Looking at it, she dug it a little deeper against her forearm before making a small clean cut and watching the blood flow out of her arms. Now as she looked back at both of her arms, there really wasn't any inch of her skin that was left unmarked.

She walked over to her closet and grabbed a long sleeved pink shirt and pulled it over her head making sure none of her skin was exposed. She then pulled on a pair of her dark blue jeans and some tennis. Making sure that none of her was showing, she walked out of the door and to one of the apparition points, making sure that none of her neighbors were watching, before she disappeared.

She arrived at the Leaky Cauldron before giving a small wave to Tom, before walking on through to Diagon Alley. A couple of days ago an owl came bearing the school crest and telling her that she had made Head Girl, she was super excited and thought that getting her books sooner would help her cope. She saw various witches and wizards alike talking and laughing and it made her smile. Last year, her best friend Harry Potter defeated Voldemort for good, so now nobody had to live in fear anymore.

The first stop she had to make was Flourish and Blotts to get all of her books. Walking around, she already had her stack of books in hand. She was so caught up in trying not to touch any of her cuts or hurt her bruises that she wasn't watching where she was going. She bumped into a hard body before feeling herself start to fall. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the impact before feeling strong hands wrap around the tops of her arms. She let out a hiss of pain as the hands accidentally hit her bruises before she opened her eyes coming face to face with a chest. She slid her eyes up the chest and shoulders, before looking into the eyes of Draco Malfoy.

Her eyes opened wide before she stumbled to get out of his grip. Malfoy looked down at her before sneering slightly, "Watch where you're going mudblood." He then wiped his hands on his shirt before sneering one last time and walking away. Unbeknownst to Hermione, the grey eyed boy walked behind the case of books to watch her. She slowly bent down to pick up her books, muttering obscenities about how stupid Malfoy was under her breath. She brought the book up a little too close to her stomach hitting the more sensitive bruises and she let out a small cry of pain.

DMDMDMDM

Draco was having an off day. He was having a very off day and he kept forgetting things that he was supposed to remember. Ever since the fall of Voldemort, he would have his good days and he would have his off days. His father was put in Azkaban, where Draco wanted him to stay forever and rot away there until he died, so that it was just him and his mother. He no longer had to worry about doing anything to upset his father and he was free to do as he pleased.

His mother was doing a whole lot better with the situation than Draco first thought she would, but she's taking it one day at a time. A couple of days earlier, Draco received his Hogwarts letter stating that he made the position of Head Boy, and he was extremely proud of himself. Although he definitely already knew who the Head Girl was. _It's probably going to be that mudblood Granger. I just know it. _He knows the war is over and he never even really believed in all of that blood crap anyways, but old habits die hard and he wasn't going to tell her that.

Now here he is, standing behind the bookshelf and watching that stupid know it all Granger. He noticed how she had winced earlier when he gripped her arms to keep her from falling and it got him curious. He watched her pick up her books, and saw one hit her stomach. He quickly moved his eyes to her face, and watched how her face twisted in pain.

He raised his eyebrow and looked on. _Interesting. I wonder what that's about. _He then shook his head before going back to purchase his books. _What do I care anyways? I don't give a damn about Granger or her stupid problems. _With that, her paid for his books, looked back at her one more time, before walking out and apparating away.

HGHGHGHGHGHG

Hermione quickly grabbed the rest of the items she needed before shrinking them and putting them all inside of her purse. She walked around Diagon Alley for a couple more hours before glancing at her watch and letting out a small breath. It was already 7! Her father could be home any minute! She let out a small _shit!_ Before apparating herself back home. She let out a breath, looking around and not seeing her dad around before she started walking towards the stairs.

Before she could make it father than two steps, she was grabbed roughly by the hair and thrown into one of the walls. She hit it with a thud before letting out a small cry of pain. She then looked up into the angry face of her dad.

"Where the fuck were you Hermione?! Huh?!" He screamed into her face, his alcohol scented breath wafting over her.

"I-I went out t-to by my school books," she said, already hating it that she was stuttering. He grabbed her by the hair and pulled her up to her feet so that she was standing. "Oh yea. For that freak school you go to." He looked at his daughter before he brought his other hand up to her face lightly stroking it. "You look so much like your mother. The same colored skin, the nose, those eyes." He then leaned in closer to her, stroking her hair. "Beautiful hair like this."

Hermione's eyes got wider with each word that her father was saying. "Dad what are you doing?!" She tried struggling away from him, but his grip on her arms became painfully tight. "Don't fight it 'ermione. So beautiful." He forcefully grabbed her by the hair, dragging her along behind him, as she kicked and screamed for him to let her go. He then pushed her down to the ground before getting on top of her with a crazed look in his eyes. "Dad please! Please don't do this dad! Please stop!" Tears started coming harder out of her eyes as she begged her dad to stop.

She couldn't believe that this was happening to her. She let out a louder scream feeling him pulling her jeans and panties down as she continued struggling against him.

He then brought his hand up, bringing it down hard across her face, making her cry out. "Shh, baby it'll all be over soon." Ignoring her cries, he then quickly took off the clothing that was separating them and then quickly plunged himself inside his own daughter. She screamed loudly in pain as she felt her dad take away her innocence, tears streaming down her face. When he was finished with her, he quickly got up before stumbling away to his room to sleep.

She didn't know how long she was laying on the ground for, before she tried getting up, her body feeling sore. She looked at the ground where she was laying, noticing the blood all over the floor. She couldn't believe her dad, someone that she used to trust with all of her might, just raped her. She stifled a sob, before getting to her knees and crawling upstairs to her room.

She finally made it to her bedroom and crawled over to where she kept her blade. Gripping it in one of her hands, she sad against the wall, the feel of it cooking off her naked back. She looked down at her arms before gripping the blade again, and making clean cuts across her older ones. She let the cry tear through her lips as she brought her knees up to her chest.

Still staring at the blood that was flowing from her arms and onto the floor, she saw drops of her tears mixing together with it. That warm August night saw the innocence ripped away from a 17 year old girl. That nice, Hermione Granger may have just been lost forever.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Wooo! Chapter 3 is hereee. I would have had this up sooner but I was so busy with school work, and I had Lacrosse practice and on top of that… I'm extremely extremely sick. That and the system was down earlier. But here I am. Don't forget to review guys! They make me happy. And chapter 4 is definitely in the works. I hope you like this chapter. (: **

**I own absolutely nothing. It all belongs to JK Rowling and I only get to claim the plot. On with the story! **

Chapter 3:

Things got progressively worse for Hermione as the weeks went by. She was slowly losing herself and she didn't know how she was able to cope with it any longer. Night after night, her father showed up to her room completely plastered. He would 'play' with her until he was finished, before leaving to his room to go to sleep.

Each night after he left, she would curl up into a ball and cry, before wiping her eyes and taking the blade to her arm. It was so bad, that you could barely see the skin underneath.

She wrote to Ron and Harry a couple of times, but she never received a reply from any of them. Harry, Ron and Ginny were often times seen on the front page of the Daily Prophet, smiling and laughing, obviously living a life of bliss. She glared down at the prophet before throwing it to the ground and crawling into bed. The last thought that she had before closing her eyes was that after tomorrow she would never have to see this hell hole again.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next day saw Hermione waking up bright and early. She quickly showered and dressed before making sure that everything was packed for Hogwarts. With one last look around her room she grabbed her stuff and quickly but quietly ran down the stairs.

She looked around making sure her father wasn't around before scurrying to the door. Before she could open it however, she felt a heavy hand grip her shoulder. She winced because it was squeezing her still fresh bruises. Turning around, she

looked up at her father, meeting his eyes. "I forgot you were going back to that freak school of yours," he said, still gripping her shoulder.

"Just remember Hermione Jean… I will always be in the back of your mind. You can't escape me."

He took one last look at her before turning around and stomping back up the stairs. Hermione drew in a shuddering breath before taking one last look back upstairs. She walked out of her childhood house one last time and apparated away.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Arriving to platform 9 ¾ she quickly got onto the train, stowing her things on the shelves above her. She was sitting in the heads compartment because she didn't feel like facing anyone. She realized just how tired she was before leaning her head against the wall and falling asleep.

DMDMDMDMDMDMD

Draco looked around platform 9 ¾ realizing that this was the last time he would be taking the train to school. He looked around before his eyes came to rest on his best friend of 8 years. Blaise Zabini was the one person that he could truly call a friend. He waved him over watching the dark skinned boy jog over to him. Blaise was the same height as Draco at 6ft tall, with dark curly hair.

"Hey Draco," he said, offering the Malfoy heir his hand so that they could shake.

"Hey Blaise. Have a good summer?" He asked, raising one of his eye of his eyebrows. "As well as can be expected I guess. You?" He asked, smirking at the blonde.

"You know as well as I do that my summer kind of sucked. Come on. Let's get on the train," he said, before leading Blaise to the heads compartment. Walking in, Draco and Blaise placed their bags in the overhead compartment, not paying any attention to the girl that was sleeping. They both turned around to sit down when they finally saw her.

"Looks like Granger was tired." Blaise said, looking at the small sleeping girl.

Draco looked up and over at Granger's sleeping figure and really took his time to look over her appearance. Her hair was in soft flowing waves hanging loosely around her shoulders. She was wearing black jeans and a long sleeved red top, with black flats. There were no worry lines around her face when she slept. To put it quite simply, she looked peaceful.

"Looks a bit skinny though, don't you think?" Blaise asked. Draco took another look at her, before realizing that Blaise was right. Granger looked extremely skinny. Her face even looked somewhat gaunt. He looked at Blaise before shrugging. "Not our problem." He glanced over at Granger one more time when he saw some of her shirt ride up. When he looked at her side, he saw what looked like a bruise, but the next second, she moved and it was covered up. _Must have been a trick of the light. _

He then turned to Blaise and continued talking.

HGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHG

_**Darkness. That's all she could see. It was closing in on her at both sides. She couldn't fight it. She couldn't escape it. The next thing that she knew was that her world went black. **_

Hermione jolted in her sleep, her breathing coming out in sharp breaths, before she heard the sounds of someone clearing their throats. Looking over to the source of the noise, she spotted the two Slytherins who sat there with one of their eyebrows raised. She looked over at them and said "what are you doing in here?"

"Well if you must know Granger, I'm Head Boy and Blaise here is my guest. Gotta problem with that?" Draco said, his eyes daring her to say something and his mouth twisting into that stupid smirk.

"Not at all."

Draco looked at her, surprised that she didn't fight it. _Interesting. _"So Grange, where are pothead and weasel? I would have thought you three would be inseparable."

Hermione stiffened at the mention of Harry and Ron, but decided not to answer. "I'm going to get dressed." With that, she walked out of the compartment to dress in her uniform.

Upon arriving at Hogwarts, Hermione followed the rest of the students up to the castle. Arriving at the Great Hall, she looked around and noticed Harry, Ron and Ginny glaring at her from their seats.

She understood that Ginny didn't like her, because the younger girl never did, but she couldn't understand why the boys were acting the way they did. She looked at them one last time before taking a seat at the very end of the Gryffindor table.

When the first years were all sorted, and the Headmaster said his speech, food appeared on the table and Hermione realized she wasn't that hungry. Instead she resorted to pushing the food around on her plate.

DMDMDMDMDMDMD

Draco and Blaise sat in the middle of the Slytherin table talking and eating. Draco was continuously pushing Pansy Parkinson's hand off his lap. The stupid girl just couldn't get the hint. Finally he got fed up with her and snapped. "Parkinson! If you do not remove your stupid hand from my lap, I will be forced to remove it for you. And trust me… You won't like it!" He growled menacingly, before she removed her hand and he continued eating.

He felt a nudge on his side and looked over at Blaise with a raised eyebrow. "What?" he said. "Look at Granger," Blaise said, pointing discretely at the Gryffindor table. Draco looked over and saw Granger sitting at the very corner of the table, not talking to anybody. "She's not eating." He pointed out to Blaise. And for some reason, that really bothered him.

He looked down the table and noticed that potter and the two Weasleys were glaring at her with disgust. "What's that about?" Blaise just shrugged his shoulders. "No idea," the other boy responded.

Draco shrugged his shoulders and finished eating when the headmaster called him and Granger up to the front to be shown to their rooms. They all walked up to the 7th floor, to be shown to a picture of a mermaid.

"This is the portrait that will be guarding your room. Choose a password and it will allow you to enter." Professor Dumbledore smiled at them, his eyes twinkling before he walked away.

"Draco looked at Granger before sneering and said, "how about ugly beaver?" He looked at her, waiting for a response before she merely shrugged. The mermaid in the portrait giggled before swinging open, signifying that that was now the new password.

Granger walked in, not even glancing at Draco. He made a disgruntled nose before walking in and looking around. The living area consisted of two armchairs and two sofas by the fire, with a table in the middle. They had their own personal kitchen as well as a shared bathroom.

He looked at her again before smirking. "Well this must look huge compared to the house you live in huh mudblood?" He waited for some sort of scathing remark from her, before she looked at him and then turned around and walked towards her room. She walked inside, before shutting the door with a resounding snap behind her.

Draco made another disgruntled noise as he stared at her shut door. He shook his head before walking into his room and shutting his door as well.

Falling on his bed, his last thoughts before he closed his eyes for the night, were that Granger's eyes were devoid of any emotion. She almost looked like she was dead to him.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Chapter 4! I know. I would have had this out sooner, but I'm still trying to get rid of this bug that won't leave me alone. I sound terrible. I've also had to deal with school, and then Lacrosse practice has also been tough. So anyways, I'm going to try to post one more chapter on the Thursday, but if I don't get to it I'm sorry and you'll have to wait until next Tuesday or Wednesday. The reason being is that I'm going to a tournament with my Lacrosse team this weekend. Wish me luck! (: **

**I love love love all of your reviews! They all make me smile and they make me super happy. (: Keep up the good work guys. And don't forget to continue to review. **

**I own none of this. It all belongs to JK Rowling(except the plot.)**

**Chapter 4: **

Screams penetrated the night air. It almost seemed like someone was being tortured. Draco shot up out of bed, wand in hand before looking around his room. Upon realizing that the noise was coming from across the hall, he quickly ran out of the door and towards Grangers room. He tried her door, realizing it was locked before saying a quick 'Alohamora' and opening it and running inside.

Running in he noticed two things. 1: No one was in her room and 2: Granger was flailing around on her bed.

He walked slowly over to her, and leaned his head closer to hear what she was saying. 'No, No stop!' He pulled his head back to look at her again. 'Please. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Stop. Please.'

Draco looked over Grangers form, noticing that her shirt rose up a little on her stomach. He leaned down to get a closer view before recoiling slightly. She had what looked to be handprints on her sides.

He shook his head again, and when he looked back her shirt was covering her again. _No. That's not possible._ He walked over to her bed before grabbing her hands to stop them from swinging. "Granger wake up!" He shook her slightly, but she only started flailing harder.

"Granger! Hermione! Wake up!" With that, she flung her whole body up, wrenching out of his grasp and moving to the corner of her bed. "Malfoy?"

HGHGHGHGHGHG

_All she could feel was his hands all around her. Touching her. Hitting her. Scratching her. She felt dirty. Used. She couldn't escape him. He was everywhere, and his voice was inside of her head. _

_She just wanted to be let out of this hell hole. But every time she ran, he was there. Pulling her back again. She heard a voice calling out to her though. It was telling her to wake up. She started running towards the voice, until it was getting louder and louder and then everything went black. _

Hermione shot up in bed, scrambling towards the corner, before looking to see who had woken her up. "Malfoy?" She looked slightly shocked before asking him "what are you doing here?"

"You were screaming in your sleep, I thought that someone was attacking you,"

"So you came in here to stop them?"

He sneered at her before replying. "Of course not mudblood. I just wanted to see who was attacking you, and give them a medal." He sneered again, noticing her face drop.

"Now I'm going to back to my room. Do try not to scream anymore Granger." And with that, he turned out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

Hermione laid back on her bed, a few tears leaking out of her eyes before shaking her head. _Why did he have to ruin my life? _She thought. She then closed her eyes for the night, not realizing that she dreamt of a boy with grey eyes.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next morning, Hermione woke up bright and early, her eyes still heavy from sleep,. She trudged slowly to the bathroom, making sure both her and MaLfoy's doors were locked. She slowly undressed before looking at herself in the mirror. She cried at what she saw.

Her stomach, arms, chest, legs, backs. Every single inch of her was covered in bruises. She looked at her arms then and took in all of the cuts and crisscross patterns. She then directed her gaze to her own eyes and flinched. Her eyes looked dead. There was absolutely no emotion, no spark in them.

Finally looking away from the mirror, she walked over and took her shower, coming out minutes later, dressed and hiding her skin. She grabbed her bags and books, heading to the Great Hall for breakfast. Upon arriving in the Entrance Hall, she wasn't paying attention to where she was going, before bumping into somebody, sending her and her books sprawling on the floor.

"I'm so sor…" She looked up to see who she bumped in to, her words getting stuck in her throat. Staring back at her was the angry face of Harry and Ron and a teary eyed Ginny.

"I'm sorry." She whispered, picking up the rest of her items. She tried stepping around them, but Ron blocked her way.

"Where do you think you're going? I think you better explain what the hell is wrong with you!" Ron snarled, practically in her face.

Hermione felt a flare of anger well up in her. "Excuse me?! What's wrong with me?! How about you?! You've been ignoring me all summer and then giving me dirty looks since I got here!" She all but screamed at them. They both looked livid, except for Ginny who was still crying.

"What the hell Hermione! You send up letters that completely trash us and my family! And then yesterday Ginny told us that you had her cornered when she just tried to talk to you. You punched her! She showed up the bruise!"

Hermione gasped before looking over at Ginny, who was still teary eyed but smirking over the boys' shoulders. Now she knew what was happening. Ginny was turning them against her because she was jealous.

"No I.." She didn't get any farther than that because Harry snapped at her. "Just save it! We thought you were our friend Hermione! Ginny's friend! Well now you're dead to us."

With one last glare at her, they all turned and stalked off into the Great Hall leaving her alone. Hermione tried so hard not to let the tears fall. The all hated her because of the lies that Ginny was spreading. She realized now that she was well and truly alone.

She walked into the Great Hall, and sat at the edge of the Gryffindor table, not realizing that a blonde haired boy and his curly haired friend saw the whole exchange.

DMDMDMDMDMDMD

Draco had woke up that morning feeling quite refreshed. Considering the events of last night, he still managed to get his full eight hours of sleep.

He went through his morning routine, noticing that the shower was already wet, meaning Granger was gone. Walking down to the Entrance Hall, he met Blaise, but before they could walk anymore steps, Blaise quickly grabbed his arm pulling him behind a pillar. "Blaise wha…" he was quickly shushed.

Draco understood why. He followed where Blaise's finger was pointing and noticed Potter and the two Weasley's glaring at Granger again. _Why would they be glaring though? _He asked himself. He then zeroed in on the conversation.

He heard Potty and the Weasel yelling at her. Calling her a terrible person. He then heard that Granger supposedly hurt the Weaselette, but that couldn't be possible. Granger stayed in her room all night.

Looking over he caught site of Weaselette's smirk, before raising an eyebrow. Clearly the girl was lying, but dumb and dumber couldn't see that. The question was why.

Watching Granger for a second, he looked over at his best mate and found him staring back. Draco then shrugged his shoulders before watching Granger walk into the Great Hall. He motioned for Blaise to follow him inside.

They both sat down at the Slytherin table before talking in hushed whispers. "What the hell was that all about?" Blaise asked.

"I have no idea. I do know that Weaselette is lying though." At Blaise's questioning look, he replied. "For one, Granger wouldn't hurt anybody. She's too nice. And two, Weaselette was smirking behind Potter and Weasels backs." Blaise nodded in understanding.

"Last night she was screaming in her sleep. She was having a nightmare." Draco told Blaise quietly. "She was telling the person to 'please stop it' and she kept saying 'no' over and over again." He looked over at Granger to see her pushing the food around on her plate.

"That's not the worst part Blaise. When she was moving, her shirt rode up her stomach a little bit. She had bruises on her sides that looked like handprints. She had two of them. Maybe more, but I couldn't tell." He looked up at his friend, to see him looking back at him in horror.

"You think that someone is hurting Granger?!" Blaise whispered.

"I think so. But I really don't know how to approach the subject with her. She'll freak if I even bring it up." Draco sighed before he resumed eating. "We'll figure out something mate. But until then, let's just keep watching to make sure that Granger doesn't do anything stupid." Blaise said, finishing up the last of his meal.

"Right, come one. Let's get to class." The two boys picked up their bags, and with one last look at Granger, they swept out of the Great Hall and towards their first lesson. 


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Yay! Chapter 5 is up! Sorry it's been a couple of days. I had a Lacrosse tournament that I went to with my team this weekend. A long ten hour drive, it made my butt hurt. Good news! We won two out of the four games! Bad news…. I'm suppperrrr sore! My legs are killing me. I hope you all had a good Valentine's Day and spent it with someone you loved. I recently broke up with my boyfriend, so I'm lucky that I was preoccupied this Saturday and that I had my team by my side. I also had a Psychology test this morning. So sorry! I hope you can forgive me. I hope you like this chapter! Don't forget to review! They seriously make me super happy! (: **

**I don't own anything but the plot. JK Rowling owns the character and anything else that seems familiar. **

Chapter 5:

Over the course of the next few days, it seemed like Granger was getting weaker and weaker. Draco still heard her screaming at night, and each time he went to wake her up, he would sneer at her and tell her to be quiet.

Whenever he would grab her arms though, he noticed how frail she was, and it was almost like he could snap her bones in half if he tried hard enough. He knew that Blaise couldn't stop staring at her too, and he also knew how worried he was about her.

It was during potions class, that he thought that he would finally be able to get some answers out of her.

"Alright class, settle down. Now, today and over the course of the next few days we will be brewing Veritasierum. I'm going to put you in partners and you can both brew it together. When it is all finished, you will be testing it on each other." Professor Slughorn said smiling around at everyone.

"Partners are as follows: Potter/Parkinson, Weasley/Goyle, Longbottom/Zabini," Draco gave Blaise a sympathetic look. "Granger/Malfoy" Draco raised his eyebrows in surprise before looking at Granger and seeing her shoulders slump.

_Now I'll be able to find out what happened to her with this._ He looked up and found Granger sitting next to him, having already gotten the ingredients.

"Ready to make this potion Granger?" He asked her, before looking at her. She looked over at him before shrugging her shoulders. "I guess." She whispered, before she started working on the ingredients.

Draco sighed and rubbed his face. _This is going to be a long week. _

HGHGHGHGHGHGHG

Hermione stiffened slightly when she heard what potion they were going to be brewing. She really didn't want to work in partners, for fear of someone finding out her secret. She just hoped she wasn't with anybody she disliked.

She always felt tired these days. Most of the time she just wanted to give up. Sleeping was hard for her most of the time now. She had large dark bags under her eyes, she was extremely pale, and her bones were starting to show.

She was listening to people get paired off, when she heard her name. Stiffening, she looked over to her partner and noticed him staring at her, with a glazed look in his eyes.

Malfoy was acting different these days. Him and Zabini both were. They didn't throw snarky remarks at her anymore, and Malfoy always made if a point to wake her up after her nightmares. Even his sneers didn't reach his eyes anymore.

She got up to the collect the ingredients, before bringing them back to the table that she was sharing with Malfoy.

"Ready to make this potion Granger?" He asked her. She looked over at him and shrugged. "I guess."

She then started chopping up her ingredients, before hearing him sigh. She felt and saw him staring at her out of the corner of her eye.

_This is going to be a long week. _

Finally when the period ended she quickly put her cauldron aside and grabbed her things. Without saying a single word to Malfoy she walked out of the room and down to the Great Hall for lunch.

She took one step in, before deciding that she didn't want to be there, before walking back to the entrance hall and out the double doors leading outside.

Walking over to the black lake, she found a tree, before sitting on the grass, and bringing her knees up to her chest, laying her head on them.

She was tired. She was tired of trying to survive. She didn't want to try anymore. Trying for something that she didn't want, only made her want to cry because she knew that no matter how hard she tried, she wasn't going to get anywhere, it was just going to leave her hurting.

She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't hear footsteps behind her, nor did she see a person sit next to her.

Only when she heard that person clear their throats, did she turn her head slightly to the right. Her eyes grew wide when she saw the person sitting next to her.

"Luna?"

The pretty blonde girl looked at Hermione and smiled. "Hello Hermione."

Hermione looked over at Luna, a wondering look on her face. Luna was a pretty sixth year. She had long blonde hair, blue eyes, and a very friend face.

"Hi Luna, what are you doing here?" Hermione asked, looking at her slightly.

"Well I've been meaning to talk to you since the beginning of September, but I just never got around to it. You look very thin Hermione. Have you been eating? Or have the bumbling zindingers been flying around you?"

Hermione has long since given up at trying to figure out what Luna was saying and she just shook her head. "I just haven't been hungry Luna. I'm fine though." She smiled at the younger girl.

Luna looked at Hermione before shaking her head slightly. "I know that Harry and Ron haven't been the nicest of people to you Hermione. And I know that Ginny is spreading rumors about you. That's why the Gryffindors don't like you right?"

Hermione looked up at Luna and nodded her head. "Yes. They all hate me for something that I haven't done. I don't know how to make them believe me."

"Ginny has always been a very rude person. I've never liked her much." Luna said, looking over at Hermione. "Don't worry Hermione. The boys will come around. Until then, you have me." Luna smiled at her, again.

She looked over at Luna, a shocked look on her face. "You don't believe the rumors Luna?" She asked, still giving the younger girl an astonished look.

"Of course not. Like I said. I never really liked Ginny. She always had the Rapid Warblers flying around her head. Those are bad you know."

Hermione smiled over at Luna before nodding her head. "Thank you Luna. That means a lot to me."

"You're welcome Hermione." Luna then stood up and stretched slightly before smiling again. "Well I have to go to class, but I'll see you later okay?" She smiled one last time at Hermione before turning around and walking back towards the school.

Hermione watched Luna walking away, before smiling slightly and turning back to face the black lake. She like Luna, even though some of the things she said were a little crazy sometimes.

She looked up at the sky and noticed that it looked like it was going to rain, she stood up before stretching slightly and walked back towards the castle.

She didn't realize how late it actually was, and when she finally walked into the castle, she heard noise in the Great Hall and realized that it was now dinner time.

She wasn't the least bit hungry and decided to walk back to her room and skip dinner.

Walking to her portrait, she gave the password before walking in. She stopped when she realized that Malfoy and Zabini were both in the room and looking at her.

She fidgeted slightly at their stare, as she pulled down the sleeve of her shirt, making sure that her cuts were covered and that they weren't showing.

"Granger, aren't you going to eat?" Malfoy asked her, looking over at her.

"I'm not hungry Malfoy."

"You need to eat Granger. You're looking too skinny." He said to her, looking at how thin she looked.

Hermione gave him an affronted look, before snapping at him. "Look Malfoy, it's really none of your business whether I eat dinner or not okay?! So just piss off and leave me alone."

With that she walked past him and up to her room, slamming the door behind him. She collapsed on her bed, not realizing how tired she really was, before closing her eyes and falling asleep.

DMDMDMDMDMDMDM

Draco looked over at Blaise, who raised his eyebrows at him. "Well that was expected. Of course she was going to blow up like that," he muttered.

Blaise looked at him and nodded. "Yeah. Mate she looked extremely sick."

"I know! But I don't know what's wrong. I won't know what's wrong until we finish the potion and test it on each other." Draco said, before sitting down.

"Wait… You're going to ask Granger some personal questions? Are you sure that's a good idea Draco?" His friend asked, also staring into the fire, a pensive look on his face.

"I have to. She won't tell me what's wrong if I don't. She may hate me for the rest of my life, hell she already does, so what do I have to lose?" He asked, once again looking at his friend.

"I have no idea, but you better hope that something good will come out of this and nothing bad."

"What more bad could happen to Granger? Everyone in this school hates her because of those rumors that Weaselette is telling them. Well except for Loony Lovegood. I saw her talking to Granger this afternoon." Draco said.

Blaise looked up at his friend, and raised one of his eyebrows. "Really? Loony Lovegood? Talking to Granger?" Draco nodded his head.

"Let's just hope she doesn't hate Granger either." Draco said before sighing.

"I don't even know why I want to find out. I don't even like Granger and I could care less about her! Well.. I don't want her to die, but that's besides the point." He said before shaking his head.

"Well… All we have to do it wait until tomorrow, and see what happens with the potion man. Are you ready for the outcome?" Blaise asked.

Draco shook his head before sighing again. "Not even a little bit."

They both sat there on the couch, thinking about the possibility of the outcome that was going to happen in tomorrow's potion class.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Here's another chapter for you guys! I figured that because you wonderful humans are being super amazing by reviewing, that I would put this chapter up sooner. Don't you all just love Luna? She's amazingly weird. We're having a dodgeball tournament fundraiser this Saturday to support the Women's Lacrosse team, so I was out in the quad today handing out flyers. I love talking to people. It's all about the Lax life guys. (: Anyways please review! You wonderful humans make me smile with all of your lovely comments! **

**I own nothing but the plot. JK Rowling owns the characters and anything else you deem familiar. **

Chapter 6:

Hermione woke up the next day with the biggest headache in the world. She knew what today was, and she only hoped that Malfoy wouldn't ask her any questions that would make her divulge her darkest secrets. She got out of her bed and walked over to her vanity looking at herself in the mirror. She almost couldn't recognize herself anymore.

The blackness under her eyes made her look like she had permanent black eyes. It made her skin look pale and splotchy. She rolled up her sleeves and looked at the dark red lines that marred her skin, leaving the skin dark and red.

Walking over to her closet, she put on a dark red long sleeved shirt and then pulled her grey sweater over it. She then put her skirt on, zipping it up and then pulled her stockings up before slipping on her shoes. She then pulled her cloak over her before grabbing her bag and slinging it over her shoulders, before walking out of the door and out of her common room and down to the great hall.

She walked into the Great Hall, before sitting down at the edge of her table. She pushed her food around on her plate before feeling someone sit on the bench next to her. She looked up before looking over to the side, and to her surprise, she saw Luna sitting on the bench next to her piling her plate with food.

"Luna, what are you doing here?" Hermione asked the younger girl in surprise. "I'm eating breakfast with you Hermione," Luna smiled over at her as she continued eating.

Hermione smiled slightly before picking up her fork, and nibbling a bite of her food. Before she could say two words to Luna, she heard a noise behind her, both of the girls turning around.

When they turned around, they saw an angry looking Ginny standing behind them, her arms crossed over her chest. "Luna… What are you doing sitting with HER?" Ginny spat out, her eyes glazed over in anger.

"I'm eating breakfast with her Ginny. What does it look like? Or can you not tell because the Bumbling Risers or floating around you today?" Luna at that moment looked at Ginny with a look that was out of character for the normally whimsical girl.

"But didn't you hear about all of the horrible things she did to me?!" Ginny practically screeched, her cheeks turning as red as her hair.

"That look doesn't suit you Ginny. It only makes you look like you have a fever." Luna said, gazing steadily at the other girl, and how her face was turning even redder. "And I don't believe them. Hermione has been nothing but nice, and I don't for one second believe that she could do anything so mean. So if you don't mind, we would like it if you could leave us alone please. We're trying to eat." And with that, Luna turned back around, and continued her breakfast.

Hermione continued to look at Ginny, who glared at Hermione before huffing and stomping out of the Great Hall.

She looked over at Luna, a look of gratitude on her face, before giving her a small smile. "Thank you Luna. That meant so much to me." She whispered slightly, her face turning pink.

Luna smiled over at Hermione before nodding her head. "Of course. I meant every word of it. We're friends Hermione."

Hermione smiled and nodded her head as well. "Yes. We are." She continued nibbling on small bites of her food, before standing up. "Where are you headed now Luna?" She asked the younger blonde girl. "Herbology." She answered with a smile before walking out of the Great Hall with the brunette. As soon as they were in the entrance hall Luna smiled at Hermione.

"Well I will leave you here Hermione. I'll see you later okay?" She smiled once more at the older girl before turning and walking outside towards the greenhouse. Hermione smiled at Luna's back before whispering, "See you later Luna," And turning and walking down towards the dungeons towards potions.

DMDMDMDMDMDMD

Draco was sitting at the Slytherin table with Blaise talking quietly to him. "Are you ready for potions today?" Blaise asked his blonde friend. Draco shook his head in answer. "Not at all. But I have to be don't I?"

Blaise then nodded his head across the hall. "Look. Weaselette, ten o'clock." Draco snapped his head up and noticed the look on the younger ginger's face. He then smirked slightly and noticed the look on the person's face that was talking to her. "Look at Lovegood."

Blaise glanced up and smirked also. "I've never seen that look on her face before. It suits her." Draco glanced over at his friend raising his eyebrow. "What? I'm not saying I fancy her or anything. I'm just saying that that look suits her." At the continued look by his friend he shoved his shoulder. "Oh shut up Draco and let's get to class." With that, Blaise stood up, beckoning his friend to follow him, before walking with him down to the dungeons.

Draco shook his head and followed Blaise, getting into his seat next to Granger, two seconds before Slughorn got into the classroom.

"Everybody here? Excellent! Grab your potions everyone and get to testing them!" Slughorn then sat at the front of the room, grading papers as everyone else grabbed their potions.

"I'll go first Granger, so bottoms up!" With that Draco tipped his head back and swallowed the Veritaserum. He got a glazed look in his eyes and waited for Granger to ask her questions.

She first started with a simple one. "What's your full name?" She asked him. "Draco Lucius Malfoy." He answered. "How old are you?" "17."

She needed to know the answer to this next question. "Do you still think of me as a mudblood?" He looked at her, having no choice but to answer this next question. "Not anymore."

"How do you feel about your father being in Azkaban?" She knew she shouldn't, but she needed to know. "I'm glad that he's there. I hate him." Draco answered, and in his mind, he was screaming obscenities at her, for asking him that question.

His eyes then unfogged and he stared at Granger, fury clear in his eyes. "You shouldn't have asked me that question Granger." He whispered, his voice taking on a deadly tone. "Your turn." As soon as he said those words, he saw something flicker in her eyes.

HGHGHGHGHGHGHG

Hermione was terrified. She really didn't want to drink the potion, but she knew that she had no choice. She shakily reached forward, grabbing the potion and bringing it to her lips, before swallowing it, her eyes taking over a glazed look this time.

Malfoy started with the basics as well this time. "What is your full name?" He asked. "Hermione Jean Granger." "How old are you?" "17."

He then licked his lips and knew that it was time to ask his questions. The ones that he desperately wanted answers to. "Why do you get nightmares and what are they about?" He asked her.

He saw her eyes slowly fill with tears before she answered. "My mother died this summer. Now my father drinks. He blames me for it. He raped me multiple times this summer, and beat me. I have nightmares about him." She whispered, not having any choice but to tell her worst enemy, everything that happened to her.

Malfoy's eyes widened in horror, watching as the tears fell down her face. "The bruises that I've seen on you? Those are from him aren't they?" He asked her, still staring at her face.

She looked at him with nothing but heartbreak on her face. "Yes." She whispered brokenly. "I've seen cuts… Did he do that to you as well?" Draco asked, afraid of the answer. "No… I did those myself." She whispered, before her eyes came back to normal.

She looked up at Malfoy, more of her tears spilling down her face. "Why? Why would you do something so cruel?" Before he could say two words to her she grabbed her stuff and ran out of the room, not looking back at him once.

She ran down the halls as fast as she could go. She didn't know where she was going, only that she needed to get as far away from him, as far away from that classroom as possible. Her feet hurt, her lungs were screaming for air, as she ran up and down several flights of stairs, never stopping until she got to her destination.

Before she knew it, she was in Moaning Murtle's bathroom. She then collapsed on the floor, and let out a gut wrenching sob. Malfoy knew her secret, he was going to tell everyone. He knew, and there was no way to stop.

She stood up and looked at her reflection before taking her fist and slamming it as hard has possible into the glass. She didn't care that her knuckles were bleeding, she didn't feeling the throbbing, she only wanted her heart to stop hurting. She hated her mom for dying. She hated her dad, for taking her innocence away from her. And she hated Malfoy for using the Veritaserum against her and making her tell him her secrets. She just wanted everything to stop hurting.

She hated Ginny for turning everyone against her. And she Hated Harry and Ron for not sticking by her. She was done living this life where everything seemed to be against her.

She grabbed the broken piece of the mirror and gripped it in her hands. She then brought the piece to her arm right where she knew her vein was. She was so tired of living and so tired of trying. She was just done. And she knew that it wasn't going to stop until she was dead.

She sat on the floor and swiped the glass shard across her arm. She then laid down on the floor, watching her blood flow out of her, and onto the tile floor. She closed her eyes, and for the first time in her life, Hermione didn't feel any pain, she knew that she was so close to being free, that she didn't hear the wailing sounds of the ghost who haunted the bathroom screaming out for help.

She was so close to being free, that she didn't hear the stomping footsteps of Harry Potter or see his emerald eyes gazing at her prone form in terror.

Hermione closed her eyes, and everything went black.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Chapter 7 is here! I know… That last chapter had some heavy stuff in it. I just want to take this time to tell people that stuff like that can happen. It's not something that can be taken lightly. So please, if something is going on in your life don't hesitate to tell anyone. I almost waited too long to tell people about things that were going on in my life, but when my friend found out, I was happy that people were there for me. Don't hesitate to tell anyone. You're all beautiful people, and it would be so sad to lose anyone. I promise though. These chapters will get better. It's going to take a lot to recover for her though. I love all of your reviews! They make my heart all happy. (: Thank you beautiful humans for filling me with joy. Don't forget to review! **

**I own nothing but the plot. JK Rowling owns the characters and anything else that looks familiar. **

Chapter 7:

Draco was stunned. He honestly did not know what to do for the first time in his life. He sat back in his chair as he watched the short curly haired brunette run out of the room in tears. Raped. Beaten. Those were basically the only two words that he really got out of everything that she said.

She was also cutting herself. That explained all of the marks that he saw on her arms. He looked up at hearing footsteps and saw Professor Slughorn coming towards him. "Draco my dear boy! What happened to Ms. Granger?" He asked, enquiring about the young girl.

"Oh. She wasn't feeling well professor." He saw Slughorn nod sympathetically before walking away. Draco turned his eyes and looked towards Blaise who was staring at him with a curious expression on his face.

Draco just shook his head and mouthed later to his friend, before packing up his things. As soon as the class was dismissed, he walked out of the room with Blaise.

"Draco what happened? I saw the look on your face. I saw the look on Grangers face. What happened?" Blaise asked him, looking at the blonde for any signs of information.

The blonde shook his head before jerking it. "Not here Blaise. My common room. Now." With that the two boys started the trek to the head's common room. Before they could make it to the staircase however they heard the stomping of feet and someone yelling out something that he couldn't quite hear.

The next thing he saw, was a mop of black hair, and Potter running past them, something limp in his arms.

At that moment, Draco's blood ran cold. He looked at Blaise who was looking back at him in horror. "Was that Granger? In Potter's arms?" Blaise asked, his look mirroring Draco's. "I think so Blaise."

"Dude what's going on? I saw those looks you were giving Granger. I saw how horrified you looked. And now Potter runs past here, with her in his arms passed out and she's bleeding. What's going on?!" He asked again.

Draco just shook his head, before breaking into a run, Blaise hot on his trail, running as fast as they could towards the Hospital Wing. Upon making it there, they both ran through the doors and looked at the sight of a frantic Madam Pomfrey and a somber looking Potter. Looking at the bed, they saw Granger there, as white as a sheet, blood seeping out of the open wound on her arm. There were cuts all over here. Not an inch of her skin was clean. Draco felt like he was going to be sick.

The moment Draco took a step though, Potter's head snapped up, a dark look coming across his face. "What are you doing here Malfoy? You're not welcome here!" He all but snapped at the blonde wizard.

Draco looked at Potter as if he were crazy. "I'm not welcome here? I'm not welcome here? What about you Potter?! You haven't been Grangers friend at all since the school year started and you expect me to believe that you're friends with her now?!" "I am…" But before he could get more than two words out, Draco exploded. "No! You're not friends with her! You haven't been her friend at all! Look at her Potter! Does she look okay to you?!"

Potter looked at the prone Granger lying on the bed, as another somber look came across his face. "No. She doesn't look okay does she? You follow after the two Weasley's and you don't even know when Weaselette is lying to you! I may not be Granger's friend, but I've been a whole lot nicer to her then you have this year."

Potter looked as if he'd been slapped. "Ginny hasn't," Draco cut him off right there with a cold laugh. "You've been too blind Potter! You don't see it but I have! Granger's been through enough. Get out now." He said in a deadly calm voice.

"You can't," Potter started but before he could finish, Madam Pomfrey swooped down on all of them like a hawk. "Out now! You're all disturbing me with what I have to do! So out!" She pointed towards the door, and with one last glare at Draco and Blaise, Potter stormed out of the room, muttering obscenities under his breath. "Madam Pomfrey, as Head Boy I have a right to stay. So I'm staying. Blaise is too."

"Mr. Malfoy," the nurse began, but then sighed realizing that it was pointless before turning around and continuing her work on Granger.

Draco and Blaise sat on the bed opposite Granger and watched the nurse work on her. She had pulled Granger's shirt up a bit before letting out a loud gasp, and trying to set to healing some of Granger's bruises. He heard a noise next to him and turned his face, seeing Blaise's expression. "What happened?" Blaise murmured in horror. "I'll tell you later." Draco said.

"Well… That's the best that I can fix Ms. Granger up. Since the wounds on her arms were self-inflicted, I'm afraid that those one's have to heal on her own. She's going to have terrible scarring when they do finish healing." The nurse shook her head before turning around and heading back towards her office. Before she walked in she turned to the two boys sitting on the bed. "If she wakes up, come call me boys." And with that, she walked back into her office and shut her door with a click.

When the Medi-Witch was in her room, Blaise turned back to Draco and leveled him with a stare. "Now are you going to tell me what happened and why Granger has bruises and why she's been hurting herself?"

Draco sighed before looking at the sleeping girl lying on the bed, looking much more frail then she had in class. "When I was questioning her… I asked her how she go the bruises… She said her mother died this summer… And her father beat her man. But he didn't just beat her. He raped her." Draco whispered out the last part, his tone laced with disgust.

No matter any of the horrible things he had done, raping women, especially someone that was defenseless was disgusting. Even his own father who deserves to rot in hell for all that he's done, had never raped a woman before.

Her turned his head and looked at his best friend, whose look once again morphed into horror as he stared at the small girl on the bed. "Why… Why would her father do that to her? It's inhumane." He said, feeling his heart go out to the Gryffindor.

"And that's why she hurt herself. She has no one. Not her parents, friends, no one. She's virtually alone." He said. He then shook his head, coming to an unconscious decision to not leave the girl alone any more than was necessary.

HGHGHGHGHG

_She didn't know what to think anymore. Malfoy knew her secret. What was he going to do with that information? Was he going to use it against her? Was he going to tell everyone? She wasn't sure. _

_Hermione looked around at the room that looked so unfamiliar to her. There was a table and chairs, and a warm comfortable looking couch. Walking around she decided to call out. "Hello. Is anybody here?" She waited a few minutes before frowning slightly. She was about to call out again, when there was a blinding white light. _

"_Hello Hermione." Her heart physically stopped. She rubbed at her eyes to make sure that she wasn't seeing things. "Mum?" She asked and walked towards the woman in question. _

_Her mother smiled at her and nodded. "Hello darling. I've missed you." She said, looking over at her beautiful daughter. "Mum!" She screamed and ran towards her, throwing her arms around her. She felt so real to Hermione. She was able to touch her._

"_Mum where am I?" Hermione asked, looking around again. "You're in a kind of limbo Hermione. They were able to stabilize you and we don't have much time together." Her mother said. _

_Hermione then shook her head. "No mum. Please. I don't want to go back. I want to go with you. There's nothing there for me anymore. Dad he… He hasn't been a very nice man. I have no friends. Mum I want to come with you." She then started weeping, looking up at her mother, tears rolling down her face. "I know Hermione. I know all of the things your father has done. He isn't a very nice man anymore, and I wish you didn't have to go through that. But you have to go back. You're still so young, baby. You have so much to do with your life." She smiled at her daughter before pulling her into a tight hug. _

"_And as for your friends. They'll come along. It was Harry that brought you to the Hospital Wing. And you have two young boys waiting on another bed, hoping that you'll wake up. Everything will turn out alright for you Hermione. I promise." _

_She smiled lovingly at her daughter, running her hands through her hair. Hermione knew which two boys her mum was talking about, but it was still so weird to her. "We don't have much time Hermione. You have to go now. But remember, I will always love you." She leaned down and placed a soft kiss on Hermione's forehead, before the light got brighter and brighter. _

"_Wait! Mum please don't go! Please! I love you so much. Please." She cried as her mum faded away before everything went black and Hermione knew no more. _

XXXXXX

Squirming slightly in her bed, Hermione slowly began to open her eyes. Looking around the room she turned her head and saw two boys conversing quietly on another bed.

She really couldn't believe that they were here. She didn't know what to make of it. She quietly cleared her throat, and they both stopped talking before looking over at her.

She looked warily at Malfoy as he opened his mouth. "Glad to see you're awake Granger." With that, he hopped off the bed, to go tell Madam Pomfrey that she was awake.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Ding ding. I'm extremely exhausted today guys. And I've been feeling kind of down in the dumps, so I decided to write another chapter. I finished all of my homework and everything, so yeah. I swear, being at a university is a lot different than a community college. My roommates are all cool, considering that I live with 5 guys. It's totally different than living with sisters. They're a lot messier, but they've made living with them so easy. I guess I just miss my family. Well… Enough rambling, on with the story! Don't forget to review guys! They seriously make me super happy, and I could use a little bit of happiness right now. Thanks! **

**JK Rowling owns everything but the plot. **

Chapter 8:

Over the next couple of days Hermione had to stay in the hospital, via Madam Pomfrey's request. She was getting antsy though. The only company that she had was Malfoy and Zabini. She didn't know what to think about it. Of course Luna had visited a couple of times, the younger girl was horrified when she had found out that Hermione was in the hospital wing. She was frantic and she wouldn't leave to go eat dinner until Zabini told her that he would look after her.

This was the last day that she was going to be in the Hospital wing, and for that she was great full. She had already been in here for a week! She was sitting on her bed reading a book when she heard a bang and the doors open. She looked up and really wished that she hadn't. Ginny Weasley was storming towards her, an odd look on her face.

She stopped right next to Hermione's bed, looking down at her before sniffing slightly. "So it's true. You really did try to off yourself didn't you? Pity you didn't succeed. You should have tried just a little bit harder Hermione. Maybe then you would be dead." Ginny said, sneering down at the girl in the bed.

Hermione looked at Ginny with something close to pity. "What happened to you Gin? You used to be such a nice girl. And now? Now you've just become a bitch. If you knew everything that happened to me, well you'd be singing a different tune." She said, her voice soft and never wavering.

Ginny sent her a scathing look. "Oh stop trying to act like a victim Hermione! What could have possibly been so bad in your life? You just want everyone's pity! So you can whore around! I see the way that Malfoy and Zabini look at you! You're probably fucking the both of them, am I right?" The red headed girl looked down at Hermione again with another sneer, marring her pretty features.

"Well let me tell you something Hermione. I've completely taken your place. Harry may have had some issues, when he brought you here, but that's been taken care of. Soon everyone will see what a stupid whore you are, and what a bitch you are. They'll be running you out of Hogwarts soon enough." Ginny sent her a smirk and with that, she turned and walked right out of the double doors, not looking back at the brunette.

Hermione was stunned. She really didn't know what to think. Where did this spiteful Ginny come from? What happened to the sweet young girl that she had met when she was 12? She didn't know the answers to any of that. She shook her head before she felt tears escape her eyes.

What if everyone did find out her secret? She felt disgusting. No doubt everyone else would find her disgusting. Who would want her now? She was tainted. Ruined. Her father had taken her innocence and she could never get it back. She had ugly blemishes on her arms from her cuts. Who could ever find her attractive now?

And was it true what she said? Were Malfoy and Zabini really looking at her when she wasn't looking? She was so confused. She threw herself back on her bed and stared at the ceiling. She was breaking and she didn't know if she would ever be put back together again.

DMDMDMDM

He saw the young Weasley enter the hospital wing, and he knew that he just had to follow her. He hid behind the door, listening to her conversation that she was having with Granger. He couldn't believe that Weaselette was saying all of these mean and spiteful things.

If there was one thing that Draco had learned, Granger was definitely not a whore. She was far from it in fact. The things that her father did to her, it was inhumane. She should have never had to go through that. No one should ever have to go through something as vile as that.

He was just coming to the hospital wing to check up on Granger, but he found Weaselette giving her a harder time than she needed. Just as he was about to walk in he heard the voice of his best friend behind him.

"Girls are brutal." Draco jumped slightly before turning and glowering at Blaise. "How long have you been there Blaise?!" Draco hissed under his breath, glaring at his dark haired friend. "Only about 4 minutes." He said with a small smirk.

Draco just shook his head before listening to the conversation, and cringing when Ginny got really harsh. He heard her footsteps coming and him and Blaise hid behind the door until they were sure that she was gone.

They both looked around the door and stared at the brunette laying on the bed. They both saw the tears fall from her eyes, when they decided to make their presence known. Walking out from behind the doors they walked in and walked over to her bed, sitting on the chairs that were placed on either side of her bed.

She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't even hear them until Draco spoke. "She's wrong you know. You're not a whore. Far from it in fact." She jumped at his voice and Draco had to turn his face slightly to hide his smirk.

"Oh… What are you two doing here?" She asked wearily.

"Hm… We just wanted to check up on you. Is that a crime Granger?" Blaise asked, looking imploringly at the girl. "Yeah Granger. Can't we visit you when we want to?" Draco asked, and sent her his trademark smirk. "Well… I guess you could. But we're not friends. So why would you want to visit me?" She asked, a questioning look on her face.

Draco shook his head before looking at her. "How are you feeling?" He asked in a quiet voice, no trace of humor in it at all.

She gave him and Blaise a calculating look before shrugging. "I'm okay I guess. I just kind of freaked. When you found out…" She trailed off at that and looked at both of the boys.

Draco looked at her once more before glancing at Blaise, and then back to her. "I'm not going to tell anyone. I hope you know that. Neither is Blaise." Draco said, while Blaise nodded his head.

Granger looked at both of them before lapsing into silence. It wasn't uncomfortable like she thought that it would be though. It was almost familiar in some ways. She sat there just stirring in her thoughts before Blaise's question brought her out of her reverie. "When's your birthday Granger?" He asked her.

She looked at him suspiciously. "September 19th. Why?" She saw the shocked looks on both of their faces and looked at both of them again. "Why are you both looking at me like that? What's wrong?" She asked them, not knowing what was wrong with that.

"Granger your birthday passed two days ago and you didn't think to tell us?" Blaise practically hissed at her. "No, my birthday…" She trailed off, looking over at the calendar on the wall. "Oh…" She murmured quietly. "My birthday was two days ago. I didn't even know." She trailed off again, before turning back to the two boys.

She then shrugged trying to look nonchalant. "It doesn't matter anyways. I have no one to celebrate with. Or if you two didn't notice… I don't exactly have any friends or family anymore." She looked slightly uncomfortable at talking to them.

Draco and Blaise looked at each other before looking at the girl on the bed. "Hey Granger. This up and coming Saturday is a Hogsmead weekend. Come with Draco and I. You can even bring Lovegood, so you feel more comfortable." Blaise told her.

She looked up shocked at the request before shaking her head. "No I…" Draco cut her off before she could get any farther. "Why not Granger? It's not like you're going with anyone else. We're offering. Why not come with us?"

Hermione looked hesitant before answering. "Because we're not friends!" Draco and Blaise looked shocked before nodding their heads. Draco then answered, "True, we're not friends. But going to Hogsmead with Blaise and I and possibly Lovegood would be a lot better than going alone. Don't you think?"

"I'll even ask Lovegood myself when we get done talking to you. She'll definitely say yes. So there's no backing out of this one Granger. You're coming to Hogsmead with us even if we have to drag you out of the heads tower ourselves. And we'll do it too." Blaise said, before throwing Granger a smirk.

She sighed before nodding her head slightly. "Fine. I'll go with you." She grumbled petulantly. "Excellent!" Blaise smirked before jumping up. "Well Draco and I are going to track down Lovegood to pester her into going with us to Hogsmead. See you Saturday Granger!" And with that, him and Draco nodded to her before walking out.

"Granger is going with us, now let's track down Lovegood." Blaise said before walking towards the Great Hall. Draco smirked and shook his head at his friend.

"We're really asking Lovegood?" Draco asked. Blaise nodded his head, looking back at his blonde haired friend. "Of course. It'll be a friend for Granger. Plus… Lovegood's easy on the eyes." Blaise said, a small hint of pink on his cheeks.

Draco spluttered. "No way! You like Loony Lovegood?!" He howled with laughter and Blaise just scowled. "Shut up mate. She may be a little out there with some of the things that she says, but she's kinda cute." They walked into the Great Hall, spotting the blonde girl.

They walked over to her, seeing that she had radish earrings, a yellow polka dotted scarf, a blue shirt, and bright pink pants on. Draco just shook his head before smirking at his friend before walking over to Lovegood. "Oi Lovegood."

She looked up at them both before a small inquisitive look came over her face. "Hello Draco Malfoy. Blaise Zabini. Did you both know that you have flabberwouts flying around your heads?"

The boys looked at her with small confused looks before Blaise spoke. "Uh. Yeah. Of course we do. Listen Lovegood. We're, that is, Draco and I are taking Granger to Hogsmead to celebrate her birthday since it already passed. We want you to come since we know you're her friend."

Lovegood smiled at them before nodding her head. "That's nice of you. Of course I'll go to Hogsmead with you guys. I didn't even know her birthday passed." She seemed kind of put out at that.

"Neither did we Lovegood." Draco stated before nodding his head at her. "We'll see you Saturday in the Entrance Hall." With one last nod from him and Blaise they both walked away, considerably happy, considering who they were going to Hogsmead with.

HGHGHGHGHG

Hermione slumped back on her bed. She couldn't believe what she had gotten herself into. Going to Hogsmead with two Slytherins? It was preposterous. But she guessed that it was better than going alone. And she wouldn't just be alone with them. Luna would be there too.

But still. Her and the two boys weren't even friends. It was an odd development. They weren't as rotten to her as they have been in the past. She just really wished that Malfoy hadn't found out her secret. And she wished that he hadn't told Zabini. But she somehow knew that they wouldn't do something as horrid as tell the whole school about it.

They both looked remorseful at the things that she had gone through. She couldn't help but have both of their expressions at the forefront of her mind.

She let out a small sigh before laying down in her bed, pulling her blankets around her. She closed her eyes, and before drifting off to sleep, she had thoughts of not spending this Hogsmead trip alone, running through her mind. With one last thought, she saw grey eyes, come to the front of her mind, and for the first time in a long time, Hermione Granger, had a peaceful sleep.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hey guys! How's it going?! I know. I know. I'm sorry that it's been a couple of days. I've just been super busy with homework, and Lacrosse practice and going to the gym, that it was pretty hard to fit this in. But all of my homework is done, we won the game this morning and I have nothing else to do! So here is chapter 9 for you! And don't worry! Ginny will definitely get what's coming to her. I'm just having trouble deciding what should happen to her. Well tell me what you think. Leave a review! They make me happy to hear what you beautiful people have to say. (: **

**I own nothing but the plot. JK Rowling owns everything else. **

Chapter 9:

The next couple of day passed in a blur for Hermione. She was back in classes but people were looking at her like something was wrong with her. She had passed by Harry and Ron a couple of times, and she couldn't help but notice the stares that they both gave her. They were unnerving. That Saturday morning dawned bright and early.

Hermione woke up that morning and looked outside. A light snow was falling softly towards the ground. She walked over to her closet to grab her clothes before walking into the bathroom. She stood in front of her mirror and took a good look at herself. She still had bruises all over her body. Her arms were still riddled with her cuts. She sighed softly before taking a quick shower. When she was finished she dressed in a pair of black jeans, a long sleeved black shirt and a soft red sweater over it. She then wrapped a matching soft scarf around her neck, and put on matching gloves. She looked at her hair, before swishing her wand and her hair instantly straightened itself out. She then put a black knit hat on top of her head.

When she was satisfied she put her wand into her back pocket, grabbed her bag of money from her room and then walked out into the common room. To her surprise, Malfoy was already waiting there for her. He looked really good in muggle jeans. And he was wearing a black jacket over his shirt, a green scarf and a matching beanie.

He looked up at her as soon as he heard her coming down the stairs and his eyes got wide momentarily before schooling his emotions. "You uh… Ready to go Granger?" He asked. She then nodded her head, and both of them walked out of the common room together in silence.

They both walked down to the entrance hall where Blaise and Luna were waiting for them, and they were both surprised to find the two of them talking. When they were behind them, Draco cleared his throat, and both of their friends turned around. Luna smiled at Hermione before walking up to her and giving her a big hug before whispering in her ear. "I'm so glad you're okay Hermione." She said, before pulling away and giving her a small smile.

Hermione smiled in return before looking at the two boys talking quietly together. "You guys ready to go?" She asked. She was surprised when Blaise smiled at her and started walking again. "Let's go Granger! Lovegood! Draco!" He said, before walking towards a carriage. Draco looked at the two girls and rolled his eyes before following her best friend.

Hermione smiled slightly, looked at Luna and then pulled the younger girl after her and into the carriage that the two boys sat at. The ride up to Hogsmeade was relatively quiet, at least from Hermione and Draco. Luna and Blaise were talking quietly to each other. Hermione looked out of the window and watched the snow fall so she didn't feel Draco's eyes on her the whole ride up.

Reaching Hogsmeade, they all exited the carriage and started walking into the village. "Alright! Where to first? Granger since we came here for your birthday, where would you like to go?" Blaise asked, before looking at her. She was stunned momentarily before a thoughtful look came over her face. "Um… Tomes and Scrolls?" She said hesitantly.

Draco rolled his eyes before smirking slightly. "Figures that you'd want to go to a bookstore Granger. Come on. Let's go." The four of them walked towards the bookstore, receiving some odd looks from their fellow students. She bit her lip and ducked her head slightly, trying to ignore the jeers and sneers from the Slytherins and the ugly looks that the Gryffindors were giving her.

She felt Draco press slightly closer to him, before she heard his quiet 'ignore them.' She looked up at him, but he wasn't staring at her, he was looking straight ahead. They finally reached the bookstore, Hermione getting lost in the shelves, before she picked out three books that she wanted. She walked over to the counter to pay for them, but before she could pull out her money, the woman behind the counter stopped her. "No Miss Granger. They have already been paid for." She said with a smile.

Hermione looked at her in confusion. "Excuse me? How could they be paid for? I just picked them out right now?" "Oh I know that. But they have already been paid for." The woman said before giving her another smile, and bagging her books up for her before handing them to her.

"Who paid for them?" She said.

The woman gave her a knowing smile. "A real cutie did." She then winked and walked away to assist another customer with their products. Hermione was confused when she walked out of the shop.

"What did you buy Hermione?" Luna asked her, a curious look on her face. Hermione looked up at Luna and Blaise before answering. "Well… I was going to buy 3 books, but when I went to pay, the woman said that they had already been paid for." "Hm… That's odd." Blaise said, and he turned to ask Draco a question, when he saw that the blonde was avoiding looking at him. Blaise smirked before shaking his head. "It's a mystery all right." He said to her before smirking once more.

"Hey why don't you and Draco go wait for us in the Three Broomsticks. I want to show Lovegood something." Blaise said, and before either could answer, Blaise grabbed Luna and dragged her off with him.

"Well that was odd. Shall we?" She asked Draco before looking up at him. He looked down at her and nodded before walking with her towards the Three Broomsticks.

DMDMDMDM

He couldn't help but stare at her for most of the time. When she had first walked down those stairs, he didn't know what to think. She looked so different then the nerdy girl that he was used to. And then he had to go and buy her her books! He had told the lady to just put them on the Malfoy tab, but to not tell Granger about it.

He shook his head, and walked into The Three Broomsticks with her before directing her to a table. He then walked away to grab them drinks. He gave her the drink, before sitting down across from her. It was silent between the two, but he noticed her fingers shaking slightly on the table. He then reached out and gripped her fingers between his hands to stop them shaking. He was surprised to find that her hands were warm. Way warmer than he thought, and he also thought that he felt a spark between them when he grabbed her fingers. He knew from the way that she looked at him that she felt the same thing.

"Stop shaking so much Granger. I'm not going to hurt you." He told her in a quiet voice.

She looked up at him, before extracting her fingers from his hands. "I know… I just… I don't know what to think. I'm sitting at a table, with a guy who's supposed to be my enemy. My friends, or the people who I thought were my friends hate me. I just don't know what to think anymore." She whispered.

"They're not really your friends Granger if they don't believe anything you say. Weaselette is the biggest liar I know and yet, somehow they believe her and not you." He said to her. She looked up at him, a small glare in her eyes, before her face completely crumpled. "I know. And I wish they trusted me. But Ginny is Ron's sister… I would make sense that they would believe her. I really did want to die. I still do. I have no one." She whispered that last part, her eyes filling up with tears that refused to fall.

Draco felt his resolve break slightly, as he looked at the girl across from him. She always seemed like she was so strong. Like nothing could break her. But here was a girl who was completely broken. She had a worse life then he himself had, and he didn't know what to think.

Everything he thought he knew about Hermione Granger turned out to be a lie. It wasn't true. The home life that he thought she had, wasn't a great as he thought. He could definitely see now the damage that it did to her, and he didn't like seeing someone that he thought so strong, looking so weak.

He looked over at her before speaking. "Granger look at me." He said firmly. She looked up at him with sad coffee colored eyes. "You're not alone. Potter and Weasley are stupid, for believing her over you. But you are not alone. You have Lovegood. And even if you don't want to believe it, hell, I don't want to believe it, but you also have Blaise and I. We won't leave you alone Granger." He said, his grey eyes boring into hers.

She looked at him, before speaking. "How do I know that you and Zabini won't go back to being the stuck up jackasses that you used to be? How do I know that you won't," she paused for a second. "How do I know that you won't use what you know against me?" She asked with a whisper.

"I won't use it against you Granger. You just have to believe me. I know…" He said quickly when he saw her open her mouth. "I'm a hard person to believe. But I won't use THAT against you. I would never use something like that against anyone." He said, with quiet authority. She looked into his grey eyes again. Searching. She found what she was looking for because she nodded her head. "Thank you Malfoy." She looked up at him and she could have sworn she saw the hint of a smile on his face.

"So… Are we trying to be friends then?" She asked hesitantly. He looked thoughtful for a second before holding out his hand to her. "Friends." He said, and she gripped his hand in his before shaking. Before she could pull away he pulled her hand closer to his and looked at it. "You have an incredibly small hand." Was all he said before letting it go.

She blushed slightly but didn't respond.

"What the fuck are you doing here with him?!"

Her head snapped up and she saw an angry Ronald Weasley and a contemplative Harry Potter walking towards their table. "Excuse me Ronald. But my friend and I are enjoying out drinks." She said, in a waspish voice. Ron's face turned as red as his hair.

"Friend? Friend?! He's not your friend Hermione! We're you're friends!" He then pointed between Harry and himself as if that should be obvious.

"We didn't think that the rumors were true Hermione. There were rumors that apparently you were fucking both Malfoy and Zabini but we didn't believe them. But now we see that you are in fact fucking Malfoy! You're such a whore Hermione!" Ron screamed at her, his face turning even redder.

Hermione was about to retort when Malfoy was on his feet in a flash, his wand pointed at both Harry and Ron. "Don't you DARE talk to her like that. You have no fucking idea what's going on between Granger and I. And if by chance something was going on it would be none of your damn business because you and her are no longer friends." Draco said, the rage in his voice prominent.

Ron opened his mouth to say something before Draco cut through before he could. "No Weasley it's your turn to listen. It's because you two believe stupid rumors like that, that your friendship with Granger is no more. You believe rumors from that stupid bint you call a sister, when in reality you should have been asking Granger to give you an explanation. It's your fault that your relationship it broken the way that it is, because you two can't pull your heads out of your asses long enough to ask her." Draco was fuming and continued on before either of the boys could speak.

"Don't come near Granger again, and if I hear that you have done anything to her, and I mean anything at all, you'll wish that Voldemort had killed you both. Get your fucking facts straight before you accuse her of doing anything wrong."

With that Draco grabbed Granger by her hand and stormed out of the Three Broomsticks, leaving two stunned boys in their wake.

Once they were outside Hermione tried tugging on Draco to get him to stop, before finally succeeding and pulling him to a stop.

She looked up at him, assessing him. She didn't know what to think about his rant. Harry and Ron have never stood up for her the way that he just did. She was honestly as a loss for words. They had just decided to be friends and he was already standing up for her.

She looked up at him noticing that he was looking at her before a small blush graced her cheeks. "Thank you." She whispered, her cheeks turning even more red. "That meant a lot." She looked up at him again and saw him give a small nod, before noticing another small smile grace his lips, just a small upturn at the corners but it was better than nothing.

As the two of them made their way back to Hogwarts, they knew that maybe being friends wouldn't be so bad afterwards. Walking back to Hogwarts, Hermione heard a small, "Happy Birthday Granger," come out of Malfoy's lips, before another small smile graced her lips, and she was feeling a little bit happier than she had in a while. She knew that she was going to be okay. It would be hard. But she could do it.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Oh my god! Guys I'm super sorry! I honestly thought that I posted this chapter ages ago! I'm so terribly sorry! I was wondering why I wasn't getting any reviews. I've just been completely busy with school and everything going on, that this must have slipped my mind. Again. I'm so terribly sorry! Well here's the chapter 10 that I was supposed to have up. It had a different AN on it, but because I feel really bad that I haven't posted it, I switched it up a bit. Don't forget to review. They make me smile. (: **

**Chapter 10: **

It had already been a couple of weeks since that Hogsmeade trip, where Draco and Hermione had decided to try being friends. They were still calling each other by last names, but they definitely had a friendlier ring to it. There was about a week until Halloween, and the four friends found themselves sitting outside under a tree. It was unusually warm for an October afternoon, but the teenagers were enjoying it.

Luna and Hermione were sitting at the edge of the grass dipping their toes into the black murky water of the Black Lake, and conversing quietly.

The topic of said girls, were currently sitting under the tree, doing their homework.

Hermione looked back at the handsome blonde, noticing that his arm sleeves were rolled up, his pale flesh shown bright in the sunlight. She couldn't believe that she was actually friends with Malfoy. The boy who tormented and taunted her for the past 7 years.

He looked completely different now, when his sneer wasn't constantly in place. He almost looked peaceful. He didn't look stuck up either. She noticed that a strand of his hair had fallen in front of his face, when he turned to ask Blaise a question, and she had the strong urge to just walk over there and remove said hair from his vision.

She was only broken out of her gazing, by a gently nudge in her side. She jumped slightly before giving Luna a sheepish look. The younger girl gave her a smile before breaking out into peals of laughter. "You were staring again Hermione." She giggled again, making the brown hair girl blush.

"I was not." Hermione mumbled quietly under her breath. That only made Luna laugh even harder. "You definitely were. But it's okay. I know where you're coming from. I stare at Blaise all the time as well." Hermione looked up a little startled at Luna's confession. "You like Blaise?!" She half whispered half yelled before Luna shushed her with a wave of her arms.

They both turned around, to see both of the boys staring at them with raised eyebrows. "Everything alright girls?" Blaise asked them, noticing the small blush on Luna's face. "Yes. Yes… Everything is just fine. Hermione just doesn't know when to not yell." Luna said, throwing Hermione a look, to which the other girl blushed and looked away.

The boys smirked before going back to their work. "Thanks so much Hermione. He almost found out!" Luna half whined, before dissolving into giggles. Hermione knew that the other girl wasn't seriously mad at her, before whispering an apology.

"How did the whole you liking Blaise thing happen anyways?" Hermione asked curiously. Luna picked at the grass, her feet swaying in the water before looking up at the sky. "I just noticed how nice he was at the Hogsmeade trip. He even bought everything for me." Luna smiled at that memory before looking over at Hermione.

"What about you Hermione? How long have you liked Draco?" She asked the older girl innocently.

Hermione spluttered on air before looking over at Luna, a shocked expression gracing her features. "I don't like Malfoy. Are you mad Luna?!" She whisper yelled, not wanting to be overheard by the two boys whom they were talking about.

Luna gave her a look that said that she clearly didn't believe a word that was coming out of Hermione's mouth. "Right. And you weren't staring at him just now either were you Hermione?" She asked again, before giving the brunette a small smirk.

Hermione looked at Luna before shaking her head slightly. "You've been spending too much time around those boys. They're starting to rub off on you! You're even smirking like them Luna!" Hermione then giggled before getting up and walking to the two boys that were now talking quietly to each other.

"It's all your fault! The both of you!" Hermione said, before grabbing the book that was sitting on the floor in front of Malfoy, and gently whacking him on the shoulder with it. He grabbed her wrists before she could smack him again and stared at her, not realizing how close the blonde boy had gotten to her.

"Stop hitting me Granger and tell me… What's our fault?" He said, looking down at her, his hands gently holding onto her wrists. She finally seemed to realize how close they were to each other before backing away slightly, his hands still holding onto her.

"Luna's starting to act like you two now. She's even imitating your smirks!" She tried to sound stern, but it came out more breathy then she intended it to be.

Draco looked over to where Lovegood was sat next to Blaise, and he noticed the small smirk gracing the girls' face. "Well look at that Blaise. She does have a smirk there." He then barked out a surprising laugh, before shaking his head.

Hermione had never really seen him laugh before, and she decided right that second, that she like it. His face really lit up when he laughed, making him look even more handsome than she thought he already was.

Realizing her train of thought, she quickly backed up some more, pulling her hands out of Malfoy's grasp. Now was not the time to start having those feelings about him. They were still getting into their friendship role. Thinking about him in a light like that was not something that she could even fathom right now.

Her smile slowly slipped off her face as her train of thoughts led her away. Who would even want to date her anyways? She was tainted. No longer pure. She had scars that covered her whole body. What boy would want her now? She knew that she didn't deserve anyone. She was so wrapped up in her thoughts, that she didn't notice the blonde boy sitting next to her, continue watching her.

She jumped slightly when she felt his hand on her shoulder. "Hey… Are you okay? You looked kind of lost for a second," he said, staring at her with a small glimmer of concern in his grey eyes.

She nodded her head in the affirmative, before giving him a small smile. "Yes. I'm alright. Thank you Malfoy. I just let my thoughts wander for a second. But I shouldn't let it get to me." He stared at her for a second longer before nodding his head. "Okay." And he went back to his work.

"Hey I'm going to head back up to the common room guys. I'll see you later okay?" And with that, she got up, leaving 3 concerned friends staring after her.

DMDMDMDM

_Draco stared after the brunette, wondering what was wrong. He hated to admit it, but ever since they had become friends, he could not stop staring at her, or thinking about her and it was driving him mad. Blaise assumed that he was starting to get feelings for her but he continued denying those accusations. _

_There was no way he was getting feelings for Granger. It just wasn't possible for him to get any type of feelings for the girl that he tormented for the past 6 years. He shook his head and turned back to the other two and continued talking. _

_Before they knew it, it was already nightfall and dinner was fast approaching. The three friends got up from their spot under the tree and made the walk back inside. As soon as they reached the double doors Blaise and Draco said goodbye to Luna and they went to their separate tables. _

_They sat down and started pulling various items of food towards them and it wasn't long until Draco's eyes strayed towards the Gryffindor table. It was only then that he noticed that Granger wasn't at her spot. He shrugged it off thinking that she just got tied up reading in the common room and he continued talking to Blaise thinking that she would be down before the end of dinner. _

_The boys quickly finished eating before standing up and walking towards the Ravenclaw table where Luna stood up and was waiting for them. The three of them walked out of the Great Hall. _

_"Did you two see Hermione? She didn't come to dinner at all." Luna said, concern showing in her voice. Draco and Blaise shook their heads. "Come on. Let's go and see if she's in the common room," Draco said, and the three of them made their way up to Draco and Hermione's shared common room._

_Upon arriving to the common room, Draco said the password and the three of them walked in, to find it empty. Granger's things were sitting on the couch, so she had been there. "Maybe she's in her room? I'll go check." Luna said, before racing up the stairs. They could hear her calling Hermione's name, and after a few minutes she came down shaking her head. _

_"She's not in there. The portrait told me that she went down to dinner." Draco got a confused look on his face. "But she didn't go to dinner. We didn't see her at all." _

_Blaise looked contemplative for a moment. "Maybe she decided to go to the library instead?" Blaise asked but he didn't seem so sure about it. "Why would she go to the library without her things though? It doesn't make any sense." Draco added in. _

_"I have no idea, but let's just go check, maybe she wanted to grab a book from there." Blaise said, before the three of them walked back out of the common room. They walked down the stairs and made their way across the many hallways before Blaise heard a sound and held out his hand for the other two. _

_They strained their ears, walking slower towards the source. They heard laughter coming from the other side of the wall._

_"That stupid mudblood didn't even know what hit her. Did you see the look on her face?! She didn't even see our faces so she can't tell anyone that it was us." They heard cackling as the laughter got even louder this time. "Granger got what she deserved, that filth little mudblood." _

_Draco flew around that corner so fast that Blaise and Luna couldn't even stop him. He ran around the corner and picked the guy up off the floor by his collar and pushed him up against the wall. He looked at the robes. Slytherin. He sneered and recognized the boys immediately. Rowl and Higgins. _

_"What the fuck did you do to Granger?" When the two boys didn't answer him he sneered and his grip on the other boys collar got tighter. "Answer me!" _

_The two boys looked at him with wide eyes, and noticed Blaise and Luna standing behind them. _

_"W-we just gave the l-little mudblood what she deserved," Higgins stammered, the grip that Draco had on him becoming a little too tight. "S-she's in t-the Hospital Wing by n-now." Draco let go of him, before looking at Luna and Blaise and making a run towards the other side of the castle where the Hospital Wing was. _

_The three of them didn't stop until they got there. Stopping in front of the double doors, Draco looked at the other two before pushing the doors open and walking inside. _

_The sight that greeted them in there was not pretty. Madam Pomfrey was over Granger, waving her wand, and healing various cuts. There was a huge gash on her head, where she must have hit it when she fell. _

_At the sound of approaching footsteps Madam Promfrey looked up noticing the two Slytherins and the Ravenclaw approaching. _

_"Is she going to be alright Madam Pomfrey?" Luna asked, her voice even more quiet than it usually is. Madam Pomfrey's eyes softened, at the obvious worry that shown on the three teenagers faces. _

_"She should be okay Miss Lovegood. She was hit with a couple of nasty jinxes and she hit her head pretty hard. She also has two broken ribs. She has a concussion so I had to put her to sleep. She should wake up in a little bit though. Hopefully she won't be in too much pain when she wakes up." With that, the mediwitch bustled back into her room and shut the door. _

_The three teenagers walked quietly towards the bed that the brunette was laying in. She looked so pale, and there was a hint of a bruise marring her features. _

_"Why would people do this to her? She's been through so much already, that she doesn't deserve anything being done to her. She doesn't deserve to be hurt. Not at all." Luna sat down and grabbed one of Granger's hands, holding onto it. _

_The three of them sat in silence waiting for Granger to wake up. _

_HGHGHGHG_

_She was walking back to her dorm with a small smile on her face. She knew that she shouldn't be having any types of feelings for the blonde boy that she not considered her friend, but she was having trouble pushing them away. _

_She walked up the stairs and finally came across the portrait that was guarding her common room. She said the password before it opened up allowing her entrance. _

_Walking inside she sat her things down on the couch, before heading up to her room and grabbing her charms textbook. She figured that she might as well begin working on her homework while she waited for dinner to start. She continued working for some time, before glancing up at the clock. She gasped noticing the time, and realized that dinner had begun 5 minutes ago. _

_Without putting her things away, she rushed out of the portrait hole and down the stairs, trying to make it to dinner. She was so caught up in trying to make it to dinner on time, she didn't notice the 4 people that were in the hallway. Nor did she hear them whisper a tipping jinx. She was near the stairs at the time, when she felt another spell hit her, cutting her arm, her blood spilling on her shirt. _

_Another jinx hit her and she tripped this time, falling towards the ground. She wasn't able to catch herself from falling this time, her head hitting the corner of the stairs. _

_Her vision became fuzzy, as she felt something wet on the back of her head. She realized that she must be bleeding. Lifting her eyes up, she noticed someone walking closer to her, but couldn't make out who the person was. _

_As her eyes became clouded over, and her eyes began drifting close, she could have sword that the person standing over her, had long fiery red hair. _

_Everything went black. _


End file.
